College Basketball: GA product Lucas lights it up for Lions

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Three days after being named to the Naismith Women’s Award Top 30 Watch List for the nation’s top player, Maggie Lucas turned in a performance that would sway any voting member.

In Penn State’s regular-season finale Sunday at Nebraska, Lucas drilled a career-high eight 3-pointers (13 attempts) and finished with 34 points. The junior also had nine rebounds and three steals in an 82-67 win over the Cornhuskers that clinched the second straight outright regular-season Big Ten title for the Lady Lions.

The victory also earned the eighth-ranked Lady Lions (24-4, 14-2 Big Ten) a first-round bye in the conference tournament, which gets underway Thursday in the Chicago suburb of Hoffman Estates, Ill. On Friday night, top-seeded Penn State will play the winner of No. 8 seed Minnesota and No. 9 Ohio State.

“We are very happy to be Big Ten champs, but there is much more for us to accomplish and we are looking forward,” said Lucas, who was named Big Ten Player of the Year on Monday.

Lucas has accomplished plenty in her nearly three full seasons in State College. Clutch performances and being in line for major awards have become routine, much like in her high school days.

The Narberth native did not simply star at Germantown Academy, she dominated. While leading the Patriots to a pair of state titles she earned several regional and national accolades and awards, including recognition from the likes of Parade magazine.

Lucas has certainly carried that success into the collegiate ranks. The 5-foot-10 guard heads into the Big Ten tournament third in the conference in scoring with an average for 20.5 points. She is also third on the team in rebounds (4.5), steals (2.3) and assists (2.2).

Her effort this season follows a sophomore year in which she was named All-Big Ten First Team after averaging 19.5 points and helping lead the Lady Lions to the Sweet Sixteen where they lost to Connecticut. In her first season, 2010-11, Lucas was the conference’s freshman of the year and set a PSU record for most points in a season by a freshman. She was also named Big Ten Sixth Player of the Year.

All the gaudy numbers and shiny hardware are fine and dandy, and there is plenty of each. However, Lucas understands it would mean little if her team was not winning. Hence, it is about placing the team first.

“None of the individual things are really important,” she said when asked what award or honor has meant the most in her Penn State career to date. “What has meant the most so far are winning the (regular season) Big Ten and playing in the Sweet Sixteen. Winning is what really gets me going.”

Such selflessness was developed at a young age when basketball was an all-in-the-family preoccupation for Lucas, who played with her older brothers (Peter and Ben) on a boys team that was coached by her father, Albert.

“I fell in love with basketball right away,” said Lucas, whose favorite player is Kobe Bryant and she even has an autograph of the Lakers’ superstar. “My dad put a basketball in my hands when I was three or four years old and I just loved it.”

Going to school within a roughly three-hour drive of home appealed to Lucas and has allowed her parents to make the drive to State College for all of her home games.

“Both my parents have had a huge influence on me,” she said. “My dad was the most influential with basketball and really still is with his support. My mother (Betsy) wasn’t involved with basketball when I was young, but she has had just as big of a role in my life. My parents provide a great balance between supporting me with basketball and supporting me (for who I am).”

Perhaps someday not too far down the road her family will support her when she opens a restaurant, which is something the Recreation, Park and Tourism Management major aspires to do.

“I am really into seafood, like sushi and that kind of stuff,” she said. “Getting into the restaurant business is something I would like to do.”

For now, the business of basketball and lending a helping hand around campus are things that keep Lucas going year round. Amid a busy schedule that includes practice, games, travel and classes, she has been able to assist with fundraisers and last year served as a judge with the Mr. Think Pink pageant, an on-campus event that raised awareness for breast cancer charities.

It all adds up to why Lucas chose Penn State over, among others, Boston College, Ohio State, Vanderbilt and Maryland.

“I wanted to go somewhere where I could have an impact and be part of something great,” she said.

With the way the Lady Lions are roaring into the postseason, the best might be yet to come.

“Our depth and balance bodes well for us heading into the postseason,” she said. “We still have a lot to improve on and we need to tighten our game, but we know we can accomplish a lot.”